A Linux User's Review Of Microsoft Windows 10

[phoronix]

Phoronix: A Linux User's Review Of Microsoft Windows 10

When I first started to talk to Michael about working with him this summer, one of the things we agreed on is that I would do a review of Windows 10. While I vastly prefer Linux as my day-to-day operating system, I do use Windows for gaming, and I also support Windows clients as part of my job at my University.

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=21981

[Dukenukemx]

Been using Windows 10 for a while and it feels like you lost control over your PC compared to Windows 7. It also doesn't feel faster to me at all, if not worse compared to 7. Lots of driver issues especially with graphics and sound. I stopped my HTPC from going to standby cause sometimes when I wake it up there's no picture on the TV. Gotta be AMD driver issue. Have to use Windows 8.1 drivers for my sound cards cause no 10 version yet. Creative sound card users I hear are screwed cause nothing works on 10 yet and new 10 drivers won't be out until October I think? My gaming PC if I leave Firefox running and go to standby then when I resume the graphics for firefox are corrupt. Again, AMD driver issue?

I use Linux only on my laptops so far but if I could I would replace Window 10 with Linux but my games won't work on Linux. Not all of them anyway.

[Ouroboros]

I've been (slowly) working on cleaning up and organizing my Windows system the past week in preparation for the upgrade to Windows 10. I'll likely wait at least another month for bug fixes and improved support in applications.

Windows 8/8.1 honestly weren't that bad once you learned the keyboard shortcuts for everything. There were genuine performance and power improvements compared to Windows 7 IIRC.

[Filiprino]

DirectX12 will be only available on Windows 10. So if you are into playing Direct3D computer games, you will have to upgrade to Win10. Otherwise, stick with GNU/Linux and Vulkan. Or older versions of Windows with Vulkan, too (if card manufacturers want to port their Vulkan driver to old OSes). And games running with Vulkan. And your life with Vulkan.

Add to Vulkan the use of Wayland. Mother 3D-API will kick you in your face with absurd amounts of frames.

[dragorth]

So, why can't you buy Windows 10 today? On a Google search, the very first result is the Microsoft Store where you can in fact purchase Windows 10.

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/...SgqtkSxBAg2A)()

Now, right after that, you talk about using the free upgrade to Windows 10. So, if you built your own PC, and you want a clean install of Windows 10, here are your options. Upgrade your current system, let it activate, then do a clean install. Or upgrade your system, let it activate, then perform a PC Reset, and wipe everything. Both of these are clean installs.

The point is, if you are upgrading a PC, then you have to, horror of horrors, actually upgrade the pc. Mind blown. What benefit do you get from doing this? You never have to worry about a product key again. Ever. You can now always create the latest Windows 10 installer, and install a clean edition of Windows 10 on that PC, skipping the step of entering a serial number. For as long as that PC works.

Now, if you had bought a new copy to install, you could either buy from the Microsoft Store, then make your install disk, or make your install disk, install, and when it ask you to activate, you could buy Windows 10 then. Or wait 30 days. Or sign up to be an Insider, and beta test new versions and never buy Windows again.

P.S. I don't want you administering my systems. You don't do enough research.

[Windywoo]

Windows 8 wasn't awful, it was the work of 10 minutes to get it setup and working like Windows 7 if you prefered that familiar interface. The tiles were simple to use too. There were a few occasions where the two UIs crossed over and it was impossible to avoid, but those were not exactly common everyday usage. In your review you've been mostly fair, but I think complaining about how a program like device manager doesn't fit with the new UI is a bit superfluous considering it is really only meant for troubleshooting and admin. Both those tasks will be carried out by people who shouldn't be afraid of a bit of UI inconsistency for the sake of backwards compatibility, given how often the command line can crop up in similar circumstances.

[dragorth]

Virtual Desktops are a good first implementation, but is implemented badly in one key area. Multiple monitors share a Desktop, so if I switch to a new Desktop, both Monitors change to a new Desktop. This was an issue for OS X as well, when they came out with Lion and on through Mountain Lion. They fixed it with Mavericks, and that implementation works really well.

The Start Menu has an option to get rid of the Live Tile portion in the same place Start Menu properties have been for 15 years, the properties panel of the taskbar. Also, the Start menu is more useful than you might think if you use a large number of applications, as I do. First, rather than being stuck with Windows default organizational structure of the Start Menu as we were with Windows Vista and 7, we can now actually create sections that have titles, and group applications as we want.

It is also a good first implementation. I do wish we had tabs at the top, instead of scrolling down when we have more aplications than will fit on the screen. Also, the Menu is re-sizable, so you can stretch it left and up for more room if needed.

[Xaero_Vincent]

The privacy concerns related to Cortona and default user settings are worrisome, along with controversial features like WiFi sense. Another thing I dislike is the ugly, simplistic, single color GUI elements and icons in certain regions of the OS, versus the colorful gradients of earlier versions. It's as if we're taking a step backwards in UI design and making things less asthetically pleasing to look at--this is just a small personal opinion though. I've personally had some issues with Win 10, mainly the Ralink wireless drivers seeming to crash and lose connection under heavy network usage and I have to disable and renable the network interface, which didn't happen with Win 7 and 8.x; It goes to show that things like this can happen on Windows too.

All this said, Windows 10 is still a good operating system and a big improvement for non-touch screen desktop and laptop users. Windows 8 wasn't well received by most people but Windows 10 is acceptable and good enough to prevent any mass exodus to Linux and maintain the Windows desktop dominance status quo.

[dragorth]

On the HiDPI issues, this is an issue with having to support both myriad different displays and resolutions, and applications that ran on Windows 3.1. (You can still install Word for Windows 3.11 on Windows 10.) They use the older APIs, that don't support the variable DPIs Microsoft has been pushing. Apple only has to support resolutions they have put out reliably, so they can get away with screen doubling, which is their strategy. Linux distributions repackage all their apps, and thus they get many of their apps using newer APIs, or fix issues there. Microsoft doesn't have that luxury. (Score one for Open Source!)

The old Control Panel will never go away, as it has had an interface for external programs to populate it with things such as a java control panel and a flash control panel. I am not aware of something similar for the new All Settings app. However, the new All Settings app is better organized than the old Control Panel, as well as allows you to search for a setting and find it, even if the feature is only in the old Control Panel. Thus, you can find all settings in the new All Settings app. This has made my life easier, giving support to family that are on Windows 10.

[nslay]

You missed the part where Windows 10's UI looks like a glorified version of Tab Window Manager's UI.

Never have I seen so many sharp corners, squares, rectangles, and solid color-filled controls than in Windows 8.x and later. I agree that the Windows 10 UI is snappier and functional, but it looks very primitive (in my opinion)!